Scarlet Kisses

Chapter Two – Scars

[Disclaimer: Once again, I do not own Harry Potter. (Lets just say that if I didn't own Harry Potter, I wouldn't be here now!)]

Today was a very sad day, the funeral of Fred Weasley. Of course there had been many other funerals. Lupin and Tonks, buried with Lily, James and Sirius at Godric's Hallow which was a teary occasion for everyone. Seeing the three out of four Marauders buried together. After the burial there everyone went out to a pub and drank and shared stories about the numerous pranks they pulled. One of the funnier ones was when they decided to change the Slytherin Quidditch robes into the Gryffindor Quidditch robes for the game against Hufflepuff. Even though Molly and Arthur Weasley were year sevens when James, Sirius and Remus were year ones they still remembered the small basic pranks they pulled. Harry on the other hand stayed at Godric's Hallow and sat with his parents.

Everyone made a slow start to the day. George had left Fred's side non-stop and today would be the first time since the battle that George would have been away from George. Everyone was worried on how well George would take it. Most people thought that he wouldn't be able to attend the funeral. Harry didn't really want to go to the any funerals, I can't go. I'm the cause of all of their deaths. He thought to himself. Harry hasn't been spending time with anyone but Teddy. Since Harry was Teddy's godfather, Harry felt like he had to step up to the plate know and look after him.

Harry rolled out of this four-poster bed and walked towards the bathroom that was connected to the seventh year boy's dorm. Most people went to their houses common rooms and dorms to spend the nights after the battle. A few people went back their homes and apperated back to Hogwarts the next day. The Weasleys and Malfoys were the only pure-blooded families that stayed at Hogwarts. Most people that were staying at Hogwarts were Half-Bloods or muggle-borns. Naturally the Malfoys had the whole Slytherin common room and dorms to themselves (besides the frightened year ones and twos whose parents and older sisters or brothers supported the Dark Cause and had been taken by Aurors.) To most people's surprise Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff had a few people that were taken by Aurors to have further questioning.

Harry came face to face with a mirror. Harry observed his own reflection. His emerald eyes stood out against his black bags underneath his eyes. It was obvious that the sleepless nights while on the run were catching up to him. His face was pale and screamed sadness. After going to all the funerals Harry felt like he would never experience happiness anymore. Harry wanted to spend time by himself so he was rarely seen in the Great Hall at meal times. If he was at any meals he sat by himself at the end of any table. To sum up his appearance it didn't say that he was a young man. No, it looked like he was a 37 year old drug addict. Even the automatic acceptance of Auror training didn't make him happy. It just reminded him that he had defeated Voldemort and he was the cause of everyone's death.

Ginny on the other hand slept and constantly stayed in an old abandoned charms classroom. She had transfigured a desk into a mattress and a bed frame. And only left the room to either go to funerals or get food directly from the kitchens. Her time was constantly filled with her staring at a wall or door. Ginny wanted to spend her time with Harry but she didn't want to see anyone. Not yet she thought to herself. She had to tell Harry that she was leaving. She couldn't just pack up her bags and ditch the country. Harry, being Harry he would send a search party out and try to find her. She could tell Hermione. Ginny shook out that thought as soon as it came in. Hermione would just make matters worse. She would somehow convince her to stay or tell everyone then try to make them understand. But Ginny knew that what Hermione would do gave her a one-way ticket to Azkaban with a life sentence.

Ginny got up off cold, hard ground. She instantly regretted it; her bum was sore and cold. She slowly made her way to her trunk and got out some long pants and a Weasley one-of-a-kind sweatshirt. And got changed in the room by the side of her bed. Before she walked towards the door and grabbed the black converse shoes that Hermione had given her two Christmas' ago.

Ginny walked around the castle without a place in her mind. She did have a slight place where she wanted to go, somewhere no would find her. Found herself by the Black Lake. Ginny knew that soon she would have to go back and changed into some more respectful clothes before her brother's funeral. Maybe if she didn't do the unforgivable maybe her Fred would be alive. Ginny thought to herself. It was somewhat true, it was like the butterfly affect. You do something bad and fate comes back and decides to serve you a piping hot plate of karma. As if losing her sanity and all she believed in wasn't enough, fate decided to make her whole family pay for her mistake.

Ginny's thoughts were interrupted by crunching of leaves. She knew someone was coming so she hid behind a tree, in hope that the person doesn't see her red hair or her purple sweat-shirt. Ginny didn't see anything but footsteps making a regular pattern in the leaves and mud.

'Harry?' Ginny questioned out loud to herself. The invisible person turned around, his or hers feet making more footprints that evolved in a circular pattern. Obviously the person was confused, this only confirmed Ginny's thoughts of it being Harry.

Harry decided on a walk before he attended Fred's funeral. Harry was soon greeted by the gentle autumn breeze as he walked out of the castle. Harry was very tempted to go and find the Stone of Recreation so he could apologise to the people that died, but a walk around the Black Lake would substitute the need for looking for the stone. With the invisibility cloak wrapped around his shoulders and the hood up, no one would be able to spot him. The only thing that people could find of him would be his footprints or if they took the Marauders Map, but that was in his back pocket so no one could find him. It gave him the peace and quiet he wanted the moments to gather his thoughts before he decided to go to Fred Weasley's funeral.

As Harry walked around the lake he kept close to the edge, even though there was mud, but the fallen leaves did a good job of hiding his tracks. And so when he kept off the main track, people wouldn't bump into him. Harry was coming towards the middle of the track around the Black Lake. He could faintly see purple in the distance and the shimmer of a very bright hair colour. As Harry sped up his pace the leaves became drier and started to crunch and make a sound. The person looked around but heard the crunching of the leaves beneath his feet and got up and ran. Harry started to walk a little fast, he was almost power-walking. For an unknown reason he felt the need to see and talk to this person. Harry soon lost the person and stopped walking and stood there.

'Harry?' A voice that sounded like his ex-girlfriend and brother's sister sounded, in a questioning tone. You could say that Harry was very confused.

'Ginny?' Harry said even more confused as he looked for where the voice had came from. There was no reply, but Harry wasn't really expecting one. Ginny wasn't showing herself. So Harry came up with the idea. Harry started to walk away but kept on looking behind himself to see if Ginny would come out from where ever she was hiding. But there was such luck, so after Harry had walked about three metres away from Ginny he turned around and started to walk behind the trees to see if he could spot her. Of course Harry made sure to stay clear of mud and to not make such a crunching noise underneath his feet.

Ginny finally thinking the coast was clear she continued to walk around the track around the Black Lake. Ginny obviously didn't see Harry turn around. (Not that she was able too). That was until she bumped into an invisible force. Both her and Harry weren't playing attention at all and walked straight into each other.

'Omph.' Both Harry and Ginny said as they bumped into each other. Ginny was unlucky and fell backwards on the ground. Harry quickly took off the cloak and reached for Ginny so he could help her up.

'Thanks,' Ginny muttered as Harry helped her up.

'Anytime.' Harry replied.

Soon there was an awkward silence that filled the area up like a balloon. The pair of them stood there not knowing what to say. Harry wanted to talk to her why she has been cut off from the world, but Harry thought it would start off the waterworks. Ginny in turn wanted to ask him about what he did while he was on his quest to find horcuxes, but neither did she want Harry to start his blame game. The awkwardness was soon cut off, because of the clock donging away. It meant it was twelve o'clock. Time for Fred's funeral.

'Look, sorry Harry I have to go.' Ginny said, and all that Harry did was moved out of her way.

The funeral was being held at a magical cemetery by the Burrow, making it easy for the family to go and see Fred anytime they wanted. With Fred's funeral there wasn't a set guest list. Basically if you wanted to pay your respect you're invited to join the funeral. Everyone who was attending walked to a apperation point outside of Hogsmeat -which was getting repaired because of the battle. It was sad to walk past what was going to be one of the joke shops. Everyone was coming, regardless if you were a Slytherin or Gryffindor people were still coming to attend the funeral.

Ginny was lagging behind at the back. She had no one to walk with and no ones shoulder to cry on. Harry was off walking and talking with Hermione who was at the front of the pack. And all her family were already at the cemetery.

I shouldn't be going, I'm the cause of his death. Ginny thought to herself. Although she was sad and had she had a feeling that Fred wouldn't want her at his funeral, she had to go. It was her brothers death, her family needed her as much as she needed them. Though she wouldn't admit it to anyone (especially George) that Fred was her favourite brother out of her six brothers. Charlie and Bill she didn't see that much, Ron was just over-protective, and George and her didn't really connected on a personal level. Ginny's thought were soon interrupted when they made to the apperation point.

'Anyone who cannot apperate could you please find someone who can and hold their hand.' Professor McGonagall said.

A little year one student she noticed was call Anne came up to her.

'May I please apperate with you?' She questioned. Anne was a family friend of theirs, her father worked closely with her father at the Ministry of Magic. Her parents were sadly murdered while she at Hogwarts for their interest in muggles. Ginny took her underneath her wing and helped for the rest of the year.

'Sure! You may feel a little sick though after we apperate.' Ginny explained.

'That's fine.' Anne nodded back at Ginny. And with a 'pop' they disappeared.

When Ginny and Anne arrived at the cemetery, you could see the Burrow in the background, and the wind rustled the trees. Anne was still holding Ginny's hand tightly and was looking dizzy and slightly green. Ginny held one tighter and walked towards a seat, with Anne following close behind her. Ginny chose a seat on the outside and made Anne sit in the inside seat. She looked around and saw the rest of her family file into the row that she was currently sitting in.

'Where have you been Ginny?' Ron asked, when Ginny looked Ron in the eye, his eye were bloodshot from crying and his skin splotchy.

'Just around the castle.' Ginny replied. Ron nodded. Ginny took her chance of looking around the cemetery to see who has came. Nothing new, just mostly Gryffindors.

'We are gathered here today...' someone started but Ginny soon tuned out.

Authors Note: Sorry, I probably should of updated quicker but I really wanted for this chapter to be up to a reasonable standard. Thank you to the people that have left a review. I'm also sorry that I couldn't write Fred's funeral with more detail. Just thinking about his death sometimes just makes me teary. Thanks a heaps!

~Ashley